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A Union of Souls 1
The Aftermath Raian Getsueikirite, Jacqueline, Hake Getsueikirite, and an unconscious Yūbi Shikizaki, erupted from the small Senkaimon into Soul Society; specifically, directly in front of the Eighth Division's barracks. Jacqueline and Hake collapsed, breathing heavily, as their last efforts had greatly fatigued them. Raian, however, stood in the distance, his fists clenched tightly against his side and his head bowed. Hot tears streamed from his tightly shut eyes and ran down his cheeks, where they landed erratically on Soul Society soil. "I failed them. All of them. MisQ, the citizens I once called comrades, every last one of them. They all died." he heaved through his tears. The tight squeeze on his hands caused blood to begin to pour through the crevices of his fingers. "First Mashū... now this." he muttered under his breath. Through tear stained eyes, Raian looked up to observe Soul Society for the first time since his return. Smoke was rising everywhere and many of the Gotei 13's barracks were alight with fires. A glint of sheer anger and hatred shimmered in Raian's eyes as one final tear dropped from the right eye socket. "Jackie, remain here and tend to the others." Raian commanded with sorrow apparent in his voice. "I'm going to go scope out the situation." Jacqueline handed the unconscious Yūbi over to her son and rose. As she approached, Raian did not turn, though he did not yet leave, as he felt her approach. She embraced him from behind, resting her head on the back of his neck. "Be careful out there, dear. We've lost our home and many of our friends. Don't let us lose you too." she whispered through her own tears. "I'll be alright." Raian replied. They broke their embrace and Raian flashed off, leaving his wife, son, and friend behind. Still Jacqueline stood in place, staring off in the direction her husband had taken off in. Unlike him, though, tears still streamed down her face, dripping onto the ground near her feet. "Please come back to me..." she whispered to no one. The Price of War The Central 46 Chambers were in ruin after Regia Marina's assault on the Soul Society. In the broken down chamber that housed it's main operations, twelve of the Gotei 13's thirteen captains met to assess the damages of the recent invasion by the enemy's leader, Akujin. Captain-Commander Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, worn and heavily damaged from the conflict, stood at the head of the group. " ! The damage report please." Yamamoto barked. "We have lost around one thousand, seven hundred and fifty seven of our ordinary troops. One lieutenant lost his life in the conflict, and of course, the Head Captain's Bankai was also a fatality of this battle." the Twelfth Division captain reported. "You mean our enemy is once again capable of stealing Bankai?" said the voice of as he approached from the corner of the room. "Yes, but it appears for different reasons than the ." Mayuri replied. "Unlike the Quincy, our enemies are not stealing Bankai because it can overwhelm them. They seem to be doing so because they know that we need Bankai to contend with them." "Enough of this!" erupted, "We should be calculating where the enemy base is and launching a counterattack!" "And how would you suggest we do that, Captain Suì-Fēng?" Mayuri nearly shouted in frustration, "The enemy, so far, has been confirmed as both Shinigami and Arrancar with a large invading force. If they've been able to evade our detection up until this point then that simply means that conventional search methods are out the window!" "No, there are more than just Shinigami and Arrancar." a disembodied voice came through the hole in the damaged roof. "So, you're alive after all, Captain Getsueikirite." Mayuri mused. Raian found himself perched in the tattered debris of the roof, looking down upon his captain comrades. "The enemy are Quincy as well. A division calling themselves Tiro con L'arco have just attacked the World of the Living and destroyed Rider City." Raian declared with a grave face. "Akujin's evil knows no bounds..." Yamamoto grunted. "So, he was here after all..." Raian rasped angrily. "If he defeated you, than he's most definitely stronger than when I beat him all those years ago." "What are we to do, Yama-jii?" questioned. "If the enemy is this numerous and powerful, how can we stand against them?" "By joining with us!" a new disembodied voice said, this one more feminine. A large, square-shaped, Garganta opened a short distance away from the meeting of captains, drawing shocked expressions from everyone present. Ten Arrancar, lead by one female Arrancar, exited the portal as it closed. "We are the Espada and we are here to form a truce!" Truce Between Old Enemies "Arrancar..." stammered. "Arrancar...here in Soul Society?" The Arrancar woman took a seat on a demolished chair merely feet away from where the Shinigami had gathered. She was clearly not a very imposing figure, yet something about her energy signal made her seem more dangerous than her physical appearance may suggest. "So we join forces against Akujin? Shinigami and Arrancar?" Yamamoto questioned, "And to what do we owe the pleasure?" "Don't get cocky, old fool." the Arrancar woman replied, "The only reason we consider this a course of action is because of him." She motioned up at the broken and defunct ceiling now inhabited by Raian Getsueikirite, who stared back down at her. "He is a true warrior, worthy of honor. He defeated Akujin in the last war and even managed to protect your Soul Society many times afterwards. Without him, you'd be on your own now." she continued. "What makes you think we need the assistance of mere Hollows?" Byakuya asked venomously. "The state of your Soul Society." the Arrancar woman replied bluntly. "It is in tattered ruins which makes Hueco Mundo look more civilized." "Enough of this!" Yamamoto bellowed. "This will be decided in another place. Come with me, Espada leader!" As Yamamoto and the Arrancar woman began to take off back towards the center of Seireitei, the other captains began to join and follow Yamamoto. Raian, however, began to take off in the other direction, only to be stopped by Shinji Hirako. "Raian-san, aren't you planning on joining us to meet with these Arrancar?" he mused, looking at Raian in a cautious manner. "No. I need answers. I am going to back to the World of the Living. There is someone I need to find before it is too late." Raian replied. Guardian of the Spirit Meanwhile, back in the World of the Living, Seireitou Kawahiru floated high above glaring straight down at a figure that stood below him. A look of annoyance and mild frustration took the place of the powerful Shinigami's normally calm and aloof expression. Down below, standing on a massive tree root, was Akujin, hands planted firmly on his hips, staring back at Seireitou with indifference. "You again." Seireitou grunted, "I thought you were dead." "Its amazing you have such an ability for 'thought'. Nevertheless, my staged death was rather convincing. If only you'd seen through my deception, we may not be having this conversation right now." Akujin growled. "You made a mistake by coming here, Akujin." Seireitou stated, "I don't know what happened in Soul Society, but I can promise you that I am twice the fighter any single one of them are. I'll be the one to put an end to your evil." "We will see." Akujin barked. The two Shinigami then launched at one another from their far apart positions, thus beginning their conflict. End...